The Tarble Arts Center’s newest exhibit “Off the Wall: Works in Three Dimensions from the Collections” brings lively 3-D art through a variety of artists and styles.

Using pieces from the Tarble’s multiple collections, an exhibit has been dedicated to pieces of art in 3-D.

These pieces range from something as simple as duck decoys and woven baskets to more complex pieces such as a very detailed dollhouse or a grain elevator made entirely of matchsticks.

Mike Watts, the director of the Tarble, said while the Tarble has always had 3-D pieces, time has never been taken to dedicate a whole exhibit for them.

Watts said what he notices with some of the pieces is a nice mix of fantasy and folk art, especially with artists like Fred Metten.

Metten is known for his many wood carved pieces of art where he would have simple pieces such as “John F Kennedy in a Rocking Chair” and “Walnut Shell Compote” which feature his smaller wooden artistry focuses on just one object. However, his other pieces “Animal Zoo” and “Saloon” are more detailed and bigger.

“Animal Zoo” depicts multiple animals in a forest. The animals Metten creates are predators to other species, however, in “Animal Zoo,” Metten shows them being at peace with each other.

Watts said he was fond of “Animal Zoo” because of its meaning. “It depicts some form of a Garden of Eden-type setting where animals are peaceful and calm, and not threats to one another,” he said.

Watts added that each piece can have a different meaning to each individual person viewing it. “Saloon” is another detailed wood carved piece by Fred Metten that depicts a happy time in an old time saloon. The carved wooden pieces of multiple figurines and the bar in the saloon contain intricate details.

This piece shows a contrast to Metten’s fantasy “Animal Zoo” by showing not fantasy but something of the past, Watts said.

There are also four other pieces with sentimental value to the arts center, not because of the artistic value, but because of who donated it years ago.

Peter Norton, who is known for his Norton Anti Virus system, donated three different pieces to the Tarble as a part of the “Peter Norton Family Christmas Project.”

Norton’s “Family Christmas Project” has been something that has continued since 1988.

The pieces donated from the Christmas project features Do Ho Su’s untitled “Glass Bowl,” which is blown glass that features a person cupping their hands inside the bowl. Other pieces donated are “Teacup” by Robert Lazzarni, untitled “Music Box” by Christian Marclay and untitled “Mister Wink Cosmo Ball” by Takashi Murakami.

The Off the Wall exhibit will be featured from now through Aug. 10. The Tarble is open from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, noon to 4 p.m. Saturday and 1 p.m. until 4 p.m. Sunday.

Blake Warman can be reached at 581-2812 or brwarman@eiu.edu.